


Anything for You, Dream

by yastaghr



Series: Scribbling is its own Language - Oneshots [38]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Crosstale | XTale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Dreamtale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Dusttale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Horrortale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Killertale (Undertale), Bad Sanses | Nightmare's Gang (Undertale), Crosstale Sans (Undertale), Crosstale Sans/Dreamtale Sans | Dream/Dreamtale Nightmare Sans (Undertale), Developing Relationship, Dreamtale Nightmare Sans (Undertale), Dreamtale Sans | Dream (Undertale), Dusttale Papyrus (Undertale), Dusttale Sans (Undertale), Dyslexia, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Horrortale Papyrus (Undertale), Horrortale Sans (Undertale), Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Killer Sans (Undertale) - Freeform, M/M, Major Character Injury, Major Illness, Multi, Pre-Relationship, Relationship Negotiation, Unintentional
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-17 04:27:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29094228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yastaghr/pseuds/yastaghr
Summary: Cross is trying to get along with Nightmare for Dream's sake. He ends up discovering a lot more than he thought he would about himself, Dream, Nightmare, and their past. He ends up with the ability to tell Killer, Horror, and Dust not to eat his tacos from the fridge. Score!
Relationships: Sans/Sans (Undertale)
Series: Scribbling is its own Language - Oneshots [38]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/667640
Comments: 3
Kudos: 71





	Anything for You, Dream

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Overwhelming Positivity](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26895589) by [withtheworms](https://archiveofourown.org/users/withtheworms/pseuds/withtheworms). 



> This was so much fun to write. I hope you enjoy it!

Cross wasn’t sure what he expected when he walked into the library. Nightmare strangling his brother, maybe? He certainly wasn’t expecting to see Nightmare curled up on the window seat, his slippers laid haphazardly below him, a giant book balanced above his tentacles as they dripped on the seat below him, staining it black. The tentacles were about the same thickness as Dream’s bow. Hadn’t they been thicker? Hmph, it was probably just a trick to make himself seem weaker.

When he realized how negative his thoughts were, Cross forced himself to walk over to Nightmare and plop down next to him. If they were ever going to get along he’d have to force himself to be friendly. “What are you reading, Nightmare?”

Nightmare looked up, startled and, for a moment it seemed, afraid. Then that fear vanished, replaced by annoyance. It had been there, though. Cross hadn’t got the sense that he was the one Nightmare was afraid of, though. “A book. It’s a thing with words in it, you should try picking one up sometime.”

Cross was only angry for a moment before the promise came back into his mind. “Funny, it seems like I’ve been picking one up every day. Didn’t you know your brother has dyslexia?”

An odd expression stole over Nightmare’s face. “Is that the problem? He always used to say the words didn’t look right, but I thought he meant they were fuzzy. I tried to get him some glasses, once, but it didn’t go well for me- It wasn’t as though we had a lot of money, and they were too expensive. I would read to him every night so he could fall asleep. When I saw his contact cases I assumed someone had helped him fix the problem. Does he have a hard time getting to sleep?”

Cross looked at him as if seeing him for the first time. A part of him, a part that had never really believed that Nightmare could get better or be nice, softened. “Yeah, but I’ve been reading to him ever since I found out. It made me remember reading to Papyrus. I don’t mind.”

Nightmare gave him the softest look he’d ever seen from him. Then he’d shaken himself, closed the book, and pushed himself up as though his back hurt him badly. “Well, then, feel free to help yourself to my library. Just don’t read him the books with the red bookmarks in them. Those have too much gore for him. He’ll get… a bad night’s sleep if he hears them.”

With that, Nightmare left, his tentacles shaking in the breeze from the open windows behind him. Were they really supposed to be _that_ thin?

* * *

When Cross and the other Bad Sanses got back to the castle that day, he wasn’t quite sure what he was expecting. Maybe he’d expected Nightmare to be waiting in the entranceway, glaring at them for daring to leave the castle without his permission, or maybe angry with Cross for letting them “corrupt” him, as Dream probably would have if his mood lately was anything to go on. Cross didn’t know what had gotten into him. He’d become so… possessive of Cross.

What Cross wasn’t expecting to find when he, Dust, Horror, Killer, and Error came back from having a riot of a time (and maybe causing one) in Maidstale #146 was Nightmare, standing in the middle of the hallway with two thin, purple tentacles around him, holding two trays of hot chocolate and cheese sandwiches cut into triangles. 

The rest of the gang immediately descended on the offerings, taking them even as they told him about all the fun they’d gotten up to while they were out. There hadn’t really been that much chaos, all told. The riot was over the local pet store not allowing you to buy fish if you couldn’t prove you were older than 18. Cross was kinda happy they’d held out, though. Horror’s plans for that giant goldfish were… questionable. 

Nightmare’s only comment when he heard Horror’s plans were, “We can go back tomorrow if you like and buy enough supplies for your brother to keep as many fish as he would like. We can also go to a fish store and buy him some filets. What’s he eating right now?”

Horror leered at him. “Hiker just came through Snowdin. Tough and stringy, but food’s food.”

“He likes to season those with Octtocatt Attomic Seasoning, right? I bought a new case from the manufacturer last week. It’s in the usual place,” Nightmare said, nodding with his head. A drip of almost purple goo fell from his hidden eye and landed on the carpet. Cross noticed the sheer size of the puddle. How long had Nightmare been waiting for them?

“Oh, you got Scream something but not me? Boss, I’m wounded,” Killer teased.

Nightmare rolled his eye light. “Your whetstone replacement is in the third drawer on the left of the fridge, Killer. I heard your last one break this morning. Try to remember that your knives are not saws, will you?”

Killer saluted sloppily. “You got it, Boss.”

Error opened his mouth to speak, but Nightmare beat him to it. “There’s a new book of knitting patterns on the beanbag in your room for you. It’s in some Human language, but I’m sure you can find someone to translate it for you. I left you a bag with enough gold to buy one of the young Lust Sanses’ time for a few weeks. I know you like using them.”

Error blushed, snatched another little sandwich, and stomped off towards his wing of the castle. 

Dust eyed him thoughtfully, then turned to Nightmare, who sighed. “There’s a new version of Fluffy Bunny for you to read your brother in your room.”

Dust nodded and ghosted away, just like the Papyrus that used to follow him. 

Seeing how Nightmare had handled all of them, these Sanses that had received the short end of the stick, caring for them without trying to change their nature… it made Cross remember how much he’d appreciated that about him. Dream had offered to help them TRUE RESET their worlds and give them a chance at a free, happy life. They’d been insulted. Aside from the fact that most of their problems came from RESET happy humans, their personalities and even their names came from the struggles they’d faced. Nightmare recognized that and helped them to find happiness as they were, not as they had been.

Cross wasn’t sure which approach he favored, honestly. He felt like everyone should get the option to have both as he had. His world was RESET and happy, but people still remembered the past and worked from there. But he knew not everyone would want that. Everyone should get to choose.

As he turned back to face Nightmare after watching the others leave into their sections of the castle, Cross frowned. Since when did Nightmare look so purple? Yeah, he was still covered in black, but his goop was usually kinda green. Also, since when did he only have two tentacles?

Before Cross could comment, Nightmare slipped into the shadows and left him alone, a still-steaming cup of hot chocolate waiting for him on the side table.

* * *

Cross was getting worried. It had been days since he'd seen Nightmare eat, and, the last time he had, Cross had heard him throwing it up not long after. Even the Guardians of Feelings needed to eat. Maybe he was sneaking food out of the fridge at midnight... that still wouldn't have been enough to sustain him, even if the fridge had been emptied in the morning every morning. It hadn't been. Cross had checked.

So, maybe Cross was bringing Nightmare a meal at 2 am because his ever-present guilt had overwhelmed his common sense. He was sure he was going to get kicked out for waking the Boss, but hopefully, he'd at least eat something.

Imagine his surprise then when he got to Nightmare's room and found light creeping out from under the door. Cross frowned. What was Nightmare doing up at this hour? Dream was fast asleep right now, resting after a stressful day. Cross knew that Nightmare's day had been just as stressful, so why wasn't he asleep?

Cross used his elbow to knock on the door since his arms were full of plates, cups, bowls, and an orange. He'd had no idea what Nightmare would like, so he grabbed some of everything. Maybe he should have used a tray. Yeah, he'd never been the best at planning.

"Come in, Cross," Nightmare called out. Was it just Cross or did his voice sound shakier?

Whatever. Cross used his magic to open the door and stepped in, trying to keep a smile on his face. It was hard, though. Nightmare looked exhausted. Stars, when was the last time he slept? And where were his tentacles? Cross couldn't see any of them.

He didn't get long to look, though. At the sight of the food Nightmare's purple-black cheeks turned green. He twisted to one side and bent over. Cross was treated to the sound of retching.

"Boss?!!" Cross called out, dropping the food and leaping over to Nightmare's side. The sight of Nightmare, bent over and shaking, made Cross sweat. "Are you sick, Boss? Shit, I should have asked if you were okay with food fir...st..." That was when Cross saw what Nightmare had thrown up. It was pure corruption, that black goo that covered Nightmare. Well, it looked like that until Cross saw the blood. "Boss!!"

"Please stop yelling, Cross. It's just... a dark chocolate and raspberry smoothie. I'm... I'm fine. Please take the food away. I haven't been able to keep much down the past few days," Nightmare said weakly.

"Boss, if you were this sick you shouldn't have been on the mission today, and you definitely shouldn't be working on..." It was only then that Cross took in what Nightmare was doing. Paperwork. Nightmare's desk was covered in paperwork. It was stained with goo in a few places, but, as Cross had recently learned, cleaning up Nightmare's corruption was relatively easy. Sure enough, there were two piles of washcloths next to the papers. One was clean, the other dirty. "Boss! Paperwork can wait until tomorrow. you need to sleep!"

"But-"

Cross shook his head in the face of Nightmare's bewilderment. He was remembering how much more organized and efficient a leader Nightmare was than his brother. He kept track of things, made good plans, and gave direct orders. Dream... didn't.

"No buts. I'm putting you to bed and I don't want you to get up unless you have to. That's final." Cross wasn't kidding. He carefully picked Nightmare up, ignoring the faint struggles like he'd been trained to, and carried him over to the big bed. He carefully tucked the Guardian of Negativity in and pulled out a dog eared copy of Fluffy Bunny.

Nightmare glared at him. "I'm not my brother. I can fall asleep on my own, thank you very much. You are dismi- No, you will clean up the mess of food you left in the doorway. Then you are dismissed. Do I make myself clear?"

Cross didn't let his inner grin show on the outside. That was the Nightmare he knew. "Perfectly."

* * *

It was just another Tuesday until it happened. Cross had been chatting with Dream. He loved that Guardian more than the stars, but sometimes he said the stupidest things. He'd said he'd never understood how Nightmare could read so much! Cross had remembered his Alphys and how she hid her loneliness in books. It had made him wonder about Nightmare. Could he really be that lonely? In Cross' experience, people felt lonely when they felt ignored or forgotten. Who would ever be able to forget Nightmare? Was he feeling ignored? Why?

Cross had been thinking about that as he paced through the hallways of the castle. He'd almost done a complete circuit when he turned the corner and it happened. His foot slipped out from underneath him. Only years of guard training kept him from hurting himself as he fell. He slid a little when he hit the ground, his cape softening the blow. It was only when he brought his hand up from the ground to see what had tripped him that he panicked. It was Nightmare's corruption.

The guard jumped to his feet, his legs going into a wide, stable stance as he had been trained. He looked around for Nightmare. This much corruption... if it had been blood, Cross would have thought he'd have bled out.

Cross found him not far away, curled up halfway in an alcove and shaking. There was just enough of the corruption left to keep his bones covered... and hold them together. Night's bones, now that he looked like a normal, small skeleton, were broken and cracked in so many places that Cross was amazed he wasn't dust! He looked like someone had beat him to shit, considered things for a bit, and kept going. Who the hell could do this to his boss?!

The guard evaluated the hallway, but there was no one visible and no marks in the goop but his own. He decided it was safe to focus on Nightmare and knelt beside him. "Um... Boss? Are you okay?"

Nightmare turned his skull slightly, and Cross was treated to the gleam of a crown on his forehead. What?

"That is one of the stupidest questions you have ever asked me, Cross. Of course, I am oka-" His speech was interrupted by a wracking cough that brought up actual blood. Cross, wordlessly, helped Nightmare to turn so he wouldn't drown in his own blood. "... Okay, perhaps I am not."

Cross bit back an angry retort, one that was fueled by fear. How could Nightmare think he would buy that lie? "Boss, you look like you're going to dust at any moment. That's more than a perhaps's worth. There's no fucking way I'd believe otherwise. Now tell me who the hell did this to you! I'll hunt them down while Dream heals-"

Nightmare's shudder stopped Cross dead in his tracks. Slowly, ever so slowly, Nightmare smiled at him. When he spoke, his voice stuttered. "I would l-l-love to have my brother heal m-m-me, but... I can't let-t-t him see me like this. If he f-f-found out that this was why-"

A painful idea wormed its way into the front of Cross' mind. Dream had spent so much time talking about what his brother had been like when they were young. He'd described a shy, polite, dutiful child who spent every moment he could reading. He'd said Nightmare had shown a sweet, caring side only to him that was maybe a bit overprotective, but that he'd never really liked hugs and always wore long sleeves and pants. Cross mind circled the behavior and rephrased some of it. Nightmare had been fearful of everyone but Dream, had avoided interacting with others, had probably hidden mental or physical wounds from his brother (or both), and had shown escapist tendencies. In other words, Nightmare had been abused.

"How long were the villagers hurting you for, Nightmare?" Cross asked seriously. Nightmare flinched, his shaking increased in intensity, and he looked away from Cross as if he was unable to meet his eyes. Cross knew that the moment he opened his mouth it would be to lie. He wasn't going to let Nightmare get away with that. "Night, please tell me. I want to help you! I care about you deeply. Please, let me in. Who has hurt you so much?"

That was when Cross was shocked beyond measure. Nightmare wailed, "Dream! It was Dream! He's been asking me to do things, to be good, to be positive... it hurts, Cross! I'd do anything to make him happy, but this is making me sick! I... I'm not sure how much longer I can keep together. I don't mind... I'm sure not having me around will make you and Dream happy. I know that's what he wants. Don't try to lie and say you care again. I'm the Guardian of Negativity. No one can care about me. Even Dream... even Dream didn't notice how much it hurt. If my own brother didn't notice, how can anyone? How can you?"

Cross stared at him with his mouth hanging open with shock. He could read between the lines (possibly better than even Nightmare could). Nightmare was in love with his brother. Nightmare was in love with him. Nightmare was killing himself slowly to make them happy.

"Fuck, Night-"

"Don't call me that! That's not- that's what Dream-" Nightmare sobbed then, overtaken by grief. Cross watched him try to do it without moving or making a sound. That...

"NIGHT!" Dream screamed behind him. Cross's skull whipped around. Dream had just come around the corner and dropped the pile of clothes that he'd been carrying. He looked terrified and agonized, which, given Nightmare's current state, made sense. Then he looked, very briefly, angry, which quickly changed into disappointment. "Cross, I thought you two were trying to be friends. this isn't very friendly behavior. Now I'll have to heal him!"

Cross, who was aware that, behind him, Nightmare was breathlessly repeating the mantra, "Don't let him see, don't let him see, don't let him see, don't...", stood up and got between the two brothers. "Dream, stop. I didn't do this and you can't heal him. He can't take any more positivity right now. Please, I know you love him, but you need to stay back."

Dream scowled at him. "Cross-"

"He's right, Dream," Nightmare's voice barely managed to carry across the hallway, "He didn't do this to me... I did."

Before Cross could protest, Dream said, "Night, that kind of behavior really isn't good."

Cross smacked his forehead. "Okay, no. Both of you need to stop. Dream, you need to stop telling your brother what to do for five minutes and actually look at him. Night, you need to stop trying to protect the innocent little brother you used to have and talk to Dream as the adult he is. Both of you need to stop lying, and both of you need to talk! Nightmare isn't going to collapse this minute, Dream. You two need to have an honest talk about what you've been doing and why."

He looked between the two of them. Nightmare looked like he was going to try and teleport away from this conflict at any moment, so Cross grabbed his wrist gently so he couldn't go, hiding his own pain at seeing Nightmare flinch. Dream, when he looked his way, looked so overwhelmed with pain and negative emotion that, for a moment, Cross was worried he'd end up with two injured Guardians on his hands. It passed, though, and Dream put on a brave smile and nodded. Cross looked back at Nightmare. He was reluctantly doing the same thing. Good. Maybe there was a hope of saving this relationship after all.

* * *

"Okay," Cross said, his hand kneading his forehead as he tried to keep from sighing. Again, "Dream, I get that you want everyone to be a good, happy person, but you need to remember that you and Nightmare keep a _balance_. That means _both of you_ need to have people who are what you'd most like. _Both of you_ need to have worlds that are your emotion. There can't just be one or the other, and that has to start with _you two_. You. Are. A. Balance. Do you understand me?"

The vacant look on Dream's face told Cross he didn't. Cross sighed and tried again. "So, some people need to be positive, and some people need to be negative, and everyone should have a little bit of both. That includes both of you. Neither of you can make the other into a version of you. Nightmare needs to have a little bit of positivity in his life, but, for the most part, he needs to be negative. The opposite is true of you, Dream. You need to be positive, he needs to be negative. Also, I need to be _both._ I can't be perfect. If I am, one of you will suffer. So I need _you_ , Dream, to stop trying to make Nightmare and me into perfectly positive people!"

Dream nodded glumly, and Cross did sigh. "Dream, you are being a drama queen. You need to change. I know you've been around for centuries, but you _need_ to change. You're killing your brother! Your hurting everyone around you by being the way you are!"

"I... Am?" Dream said, confused.

"Yes, Dream, you are. It makes me feel awful when you say I can't hang out with my friends, and you should be able to see what you're doing to your brother. Can you see?" Cross asked.

Dream nodded. It was Nightmare who tried to deny it. "I'm fine, Cross. Really."

Cross rounded on him. "And you! You need to work on your emotional literacy. That means knowing the names and the reasons for your feelings. There's books that can help you with that. I'll buy you one. While I'm at it I'll buy Dream a book about healthy relationships. We can work through it together if I can't find a dyslexic-friendly version. Actually, no. All three of us are going to work through it together."

"Why?" Nightmare asked. Cross couldn't decipher his expression or tone at all.

"Because," Cross explained, enunciating carefully, "we should all be playing by the same rules. I don't want to do something that I think is okay, but that you two think is horrible or rude. You never really had a healthy relationship in your life to learn from. Neither did I. I think it would be good for all of us if we were on the same page, even if that means literally."

Dream snorted, his cute little laugh making both Cross and Nightmare blush. Cross, just to add the carrot in, even though there had never really been a stick, said to Dream, "In return, you get to help your brother learn to live without the corruption," then he turned to Nightmare, "and you get to stay with the two people you love the most. Doesn't that sound worth a little effort and work towards changing your habits?"

"What about you?" Nightmare asked suspiciously, his old habits not yet gone, "What do you get out of this?"

Cross, unable to hide his excitement, grinned. "I get two powerful boyfriends to love, cherish, and aggravate. Because of who you are, I also become the de facto boss of Horror, Killer, and Dust. That means I can order them not to eat my tacos from the fridge!"

Dream giggled and Nightmare fondly rolled his eye light at that. "Of course you would be thinking of that. Well, I think I can... Try... To make those changes. Dream?"

The other guardian almost nodded his skull off. "I can do that! But Cross, you still need to work on keeping your emotions in check. I feel the pain when you're too negative, but I can also feel the spikes when you're positive. Those have to be hurting Nightmare. Maybe you can learn to be less... Volitile?"

Cross thought about that for a moment, then nodded. "I can do that. Yeah, I can do that."

**Author's Note:**

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